Double Trouble
by Atrum.Decor
Summary: SLASH. Serenity always thought she was a normal girl, with normal foster parents...Until the faithful night after they moved into their new house. Now she finds out that she's the twin sister of the boywholived!...Bad summary! Sorry.
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter One**_

_**The Wards**_

Lightning flashed across the darkening sky, rain falling swiftly to soak the ground below. Cars drove along the black pavement, and pedestrians ran through the rain with a mixture of screams and laughs as they tried not to get soaked by the drops of water.

One lone boy, however, stayed in place. He didn't so much as twitch as a flash of fork lightning lit up the sky, casting shadows across the otherwise dark alleyway he was hidden in; a loud rumble of thunder echoing not long after.

It seemed the sky gods were angry for some obscure reason. A small smile flitted across the boys' lips as he reached into his soaked baggy shirt, and pulled out a circular shape with a reflective surface; a hand mirror. A thin finger ran across the delicate glass, which seemed to reflect a pair of golden eyes glowing in the darkness.

"Soon," a soft whisper seemed to echo through the street which was quickly emptying due to the raging storm. "Soon you shall be free, my love."

* * *

Dark emerald green eyes opened wearily. A soft groan echoed through the room and a pale hand reached up to rub the bridge of a small dainty looking nose. Blurred eyes glanced at the bright red numbers of an alarm clock and another groan echoed through the room before the girl lying the middle of a king sized bed lifted a pillow over her face and attempted to smother herself with it.

An amused chuckle that was heard from the door was her only warning before her blankets and pillows were ripped off of her lithe form causing her to whimper and curl into a small ball, trying to savor the warmth that once covered her body. "Come on, sleepy head. I know you don't want too, but the neighbors did ask nicely," a soft voice said from somewhere above her, and the girl opened an eye.

"Nu-uh," she mumbled sleepily and attempted to curl into her bed, clutching the forest green sheets in her hands.

Her foster mother gave a sigh and shook her head lightly. "Serenity, get up. We're going to have dinner over at the Dursley's whether you like it or not," she said, giving Serenity a light swap on the butt with a pillow.

Serenity, ever the coherent one, growled into her mattress and sat up huffily, about to tell her foster mother where to shove it when she was smacked in the head with a pillow causing her to fall backward with a groan. "Wat'sat'for?" she mumbled through her pillow.

Elena Collins sighed and glanced at Serenity, an amused expression upon her face. "If you don't get up now, you'll be cleaning up after the dog for so long..." Elena said in a semi-threatening voice. It was enough to make Serenity shoot up from her bed with a shrieked, "NO!"

Elena winced and silently walked from the room. "You have ten minutes to get ready, I expect you downstairs by then," she said sternly, before she closed the door.

Serenity sighed and clapped her hands. The light in her room flickered on automatically and she got up, wobbling slightly as a flash of dizziness went through her. Blinking a few times against the intruding light, she squinted before wandering over to her closet. She pulled out a simple black tank top and threw it on over her black bra. She searched through her drawers and pulled out a pair of black baggy pants, slipping them on whilst making her way over to the other side of the dresser to grab a pair of socks. In her hurry to get dressed, Serenity's foot got caught on the end of her bed and she managed to fall to the ground with a loud thump. She cursed loudly before forcing herself up off the floor to grab a pair of black socks before slipping them over her feet.

"Serena!" Elena called from downstairs. "You have five minutes so I suggest you hurry up!"

Serenity scowled and didn't bother with a response. She went over to a table that had a mirror attached to it and sat on her black chair to finish getting ready. She grabbed her brush and started to run it through the black locks, wincing as she pulled through the knots. The dark red streaks in her hair stood out quite a bit and she took a moment to admire them before grabbing some cover-up from her dresser. She lightly brushed some of the powder over her face, applied her black eye-liner and red eye shadow before finishing off with some lip-gloss. When she was finished with this she searched through her jewelry box. She pulled out her necklace that had a silver snake emblem hanging from the chain along with her favorite lip ring. She put it through the hole in her lip and closed it, before taking her necklace and hanging it around her neck, allowing it to rest gently on her chest. She looked herself over in the mirror once again, and furrowed her eyebrows a bit. "Aha!" she murmured and grabbed her black wrist band, sliding it on her left wrist to hide the pale lightning bolt scar etched into her skin.

Elena yelled up the stairs once again, and Serenity sighed, getting up and shutting off the lights in her room before rushing down the stairs. Serenity stopped in front of her mother with a scowl. "I still don't understand why I have to go."

The woman sighed and shook her head, not bothering with an answer before slipping on her shoes. She stood quietly by her husband, Damien, waiting for Serenity to get her black boots on that had silver snakes stitched into the sides. "Ready?" Damien asked with an amused look.

Standing back up, Serenity nodded her head and replied, "Yeah, I'm ready."

* * *

The walk to the neighbor's house was unsurprisingly short, and Elena gave a soft knock on the immaculate white door. Meanwhile, Serenity looked around the front of number 4 Privet Drive in disgust. It was just too… perfect.

Before she could allow her thoughts to continue, the front door opened to reveal a woman that looked like a horse... Serenity stifled a snort of amusement as Elena nudged her in the side. "Hello Elena, please, please, come right in," she said, her high pitched voice making the younger of the four wince and rub her abused ear.

"Ah, Petunia, it was very nice of you to have us over for dinner," Elena said softly in response as she smiled widely toward the other woman. Serenity couldn't stop the smirk that crossed her lips at the false tone that her foster mother was using.

Petunia Dursley took no notice of this as her smile broadened before she ushered the three into the house. "Of course, it wasn't a problem," she said and walked into the living room, talking in hushed tones to someone. Serenity frowned and titled her head, getting up on the tips of her toes to get a closer look. She mumbled a muffled 'oomph' as Elena clocked her over the head for being so nosy. She pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Serena," Elena said softly, using her nickname once again. "I promise you can go back outside in a little while. I know how cranky you get without having a cigarette. But please just wait until we're introduced to the rest of the family and start up a conversation. If you get bored, you can go ahead and do as you wish."

"Can I go back home?" Serenity mumbled, staring up at her foster mother with her infamous puppy dog eyes.

Elena frowned and shook her head. "No, you can go outside for a bit of fresh air afterwards, but you **will** come right back in here in time for dinner, or else..." She murmured as loud footsteps approached them.

Petunia came with a sweet smile adorning her lips. "Oh, I'm so sorry. How rude of me! Please, come in and have a seat," she said in her simpering tone causing Serenity to make silent gagging sounds while Petunia's back was turned. Serenity bent down and untied her boot's shoelaces before neatly resting them between Elena and Damien's. She then stood back up and glanced around quietly, before following her foster mother into an odd white rom. She sighed and sat in-between her foster mother and father, staring blankly at the ground; her face twisted in boredom. She wondered idly to herself if she'd be able to burn a hole into the carpet, but was knocked from her musings at the sound of Petunia's high-pitched voice.

"Ah, now then, this is my husband, Vernon and this is my little Dudley," she said and smiled brightly at her overgrown son. _He looks like a small whale_, Serenity thought, blinking at the three people that stood in front of her for a moment. Petunia looked like a horse and her husband and son looked like miniature whales... She grinned suddenly at the thought, but was nudged in the side and only then noticed that everyone was looking at her. She blinked a few times rather stupidly, before noticing that Dudley's hand was raised toward her. Serenity grimaced but took the chubby hand none-the-less in her own smaller one. "I'm Serenity," she murmured and quickly released the 'whale's' hand, unnoticeably rubbing the disgusting feel of grease and sweat off her hand from when she touched the youngest Dursley.

Elena finally spoke up with a smile. "I think I remember seeing another young man, where is he?" she asked, and Serenity looked at the Dursley's curiously as they flinched at the mention of the boy.

"Ahem," Vernon cleared his throat and gave a sickly sweet smile. "I don't think you'll want to meet my nephew... He goes to St. Brutes School for Incurably Criminal Boys, and he's not very ...social able."

Serenity frowned slightly, seeing straight through the lie at the sudden tension in the room but Elena simply smiled and nodded her head. "I would still like to meet him sometime. I'm assuming he's in his bedroom?" she asked in her usual soft, persuading voice before turning to Serenity without giving Petunia time to answer. "Why don't you go up and introduce yourself to him, darling?"

Serenity frowned again, and eyed her foster mother wearily. She was up to something, but she couldn't figure out exactly _what_ she was up too. Sighing, she stood up from the couch, glancing around; looking rather lost for a moment before she looked at the three Dursley's. "Um...where's his bedroom?" she asked with a blank look on her face.

Petunia cleared her throat a bit, and pointed up the stairs just outside of the living room that they were sitting in. "Just up the stairs, and down the hall. It's the last door on your left, you shouldn't miss it," she sounded decidedly uncomfortable. Serenity shrugged her shoulders and made her way out of the living room, toward the stairs where she climbed up them with gentle steps, barely making a sound. She could hear her foster mother spinning tales about how Serenity helped boys like that at her school and she couldn't help but smirk at the thought.

"Yeah right," she mumbled softly, "More like I'm one of them."

Serenity walked down the hall once she reached the top of the staircase and stopped at the last door, to her left. Staring at it for a minute, she grimaced at the number of locks and chairs that covered the door, before she unlocked them all. "Jeez, must be pretty bad if they had to lock him up," she murmured as she finished undoing all of the locks. She could hear a slight rustling inside, so, with a sigh, she knocked politely; which really wasn't like her at all, but she didn't feel like being attacked by some crazed teenager if she entered without permission.

Scowling when the boy didn't answer the door after a few minutes, she turned the doorknob and pushed it open, peering around the black room. She frowned slightly, not daring to step in further before she muttered to herself softly, "I swear Elena if I get hit over the head with something I'm going to kill you."

Slowly, she crept further into the room, and moved her hand to the side, feeling around on the wall for a light switch of some kind. Finding it with her fingers, she made a soft sound of triumph...but the light didn't work. Her eye twitched. "Stupid bloody lights," she grumbled to herself and stepped a bit further into the room, glancing around slowly. "Err...hello?" she called softly into the room, but sighed. "Probably not even in here. Great joy. Now I'm going to have a cigarette and hopefully escape back home," she continued as she turned on her heel to exit the room. A muffled shriek escaped her lips as a hand closed over her lips and the door slammed shut with a soft bang.

She let out a muffled sound of protest and squirmed around within the arms of her captor. Finally, she stopped and calmed herself before slumping down in the person's arms, pretending to be unconscious. A worried voice cut through the air, right beside her ear, from the person holding her. "Don't think I killed her, do you Forge?"

"Couldn't tell you, Gred," the other voice muttered before she felt a light poke on her cheek by something that felt like wood, though it was oddly warm.

Another voice called into the room, this one sounding rather nervous. "Guys, I think she's one of the people my Aunt was talking about earlier. The people that were coming over for dinner tonight...They're our new neighbors...I really, _really_, hope she's not dead."

Serenity smirked inwardly as she felt the hands that were holding her loosen their grasp upon her slender form. The voice that spoke before, Forge wasn't it, replied with a shrug, "She looks like she's breathing." She felt another prod of the wooden...thing...on her cheek. She almost growled, but forced herself to calm down.

"Well, if she's alive then we have nothing to worry about. She'll wake up sooner or later. Harry, hurry up and get your things together so we can leave this dump of a place. Your Aunt and Uncle are going to come looking for her eventually and they'll find us here too if we don't hurry up," the one called Gred said, and she heard more rustling sounds.

"Yeah...All right," she heard the boy mutter. The hands on her loosened a bit more... _Just wait until you're caught off guard. You're going to get the beating of your __life;_she thought angrily but continued to force the image that she was unconscious.

"Hurry up, Harry. Mom and dad are going to be really mad if we don't hurry up and meet them at home. You know how they are, they'll hex us both," Forge muttered.

Serenity finally allowed a flicker of a smirk to grace her lips. The hands that were holding her had loosened even more, but the boy's hand, Gred's hand, was still covering her mouth. Slowly, she opened her mouth without him noticing and bit down...Hard.

Gred let out a loud yelp and jumped backwards causing Harry and Forge to look over at him curiously. Serenity scowled and kicked Gred in the stomach. "THAT was for scaring the crap out of me when you grabbed me," she growled out and then kicked him again before smiling innocently. "And that was for touching me; Period." She muttered something about people always sneaking up behind her and grabbing her out of nowhere whist allowing her eyes to adjust to the sudden light that was shining in her eyes. She blinked a few times. Her dark emerald green eyes glanced up suddenly and met a pair almost identical to her own. She squeaked in surprise, falling backward, only to land on the not-so-soft ground right on her arse. She heard another dull thump and an 'ouch' showing that the other had fallen as well.

She stared blankly at the boy that was sitting down on the ground across from her. His glasses hung down his nose lopsidedly, showing emerald green eyes much like her own, and his unruly black hair was shown clearly from the light shining down upon them...it looked like hers when she didn't tame it. She frowned and narrowed her eyes slowly, her pupils looking more like slits. "Why do you look like me?" she demanded, pointing an accusing finger toward the boy in front of her who looked vaguely confused.

Fred and George blinked at each other before glancing down at the two on the ground, simultaneously muttering, "They look near identical."

"Thank you for stating the obvious," Serenity said, her sarcasm dripping from each word. "Now, I think I'll be going back downstairs, and out the front door," she continued, muttering something about cigarettes as she got up from the ground.

Harry got up as well, dusting off his overly large clothing. "You're not going to tell my Aunt and Uncle anything...right?" He seemed unsure and weary as he spoke, his gaze flickering worriedly toward the red-headed twins.

Mumbling to herself, Serenity glanced up toward Harry at the sudden question. Humming in a thoughtful manner, she finally shrugged. "What's in it for me?" Serenity allowed a sly smirk to cross her lips before continuing at Harry's confused look. "Why shouldn't I say anything? I mean..." She scanned all three boys and wrinkled her nose. "I doubt you have anything I want. So what is in it for me..?"

Harry frowned and furrowed his eyebrows in though, opening his mouth to speak only to get cut off by the twins.

"We'll let you keep," George started.

"Your memories of this night," Fred continued, both boys fingering their 'wooden sticks', as Serenity thought they were, in a 'threatening' manner.

Slowly, one of Serenity's eyebrows rose up above her hairline, followed swiftly by the other one before she burst into peals of laughter; "Yeah, right! Next you'll tell me that you can pull a rabbit out of a hat!" Serenity calmed down and shook her head. "I mean really...I'm far from being a blond."

Fred and George exchanged confused looks while Harry sighed. "They were kidding," Harry muttered, sending a pointed look toward Serenity as the twins moved to protest, mouthing 'muggle' toward them.

Unfortunately, Serenity read his lips and she frowned in confusion, "Muggle? What in the world is a muggle?"

Before the three boys could make up an excuse or respond to the question, loud pops echoed from the open window. Serenity flinched at the sudden sound while Harry and the twins went to the window and looked outside. Harry still held the slight look of confusion, but Fred and George's faces was a mask of fear.

"Death Eaters," Fred whispered softly to Harry who was beside him and the smaller boy's head shot up to look at Fred.

"But how can they get through the wards? It's not supposed to be..." Harry was cut off from his speech by a loud shriek of 'freaks' from downstairs and he grimaced at the familiar sound of his Aunt. This couldn't be good.

Serenity, meanwhile, was growing irritated. "What the hell are Death Eaters? What is going on?" She finally yelled with a fierce looking glare directed toward the three boys that was demanding answers.

Again, before either of the boys could make up something believable, the bedroom door slammed open before it was shut forcefully again. It was Elena. Serenity frowned at her foster mother and tilted her head to the side. "Elena? What are you doing? What's going on?" Serenity seemed almost desperate now, especially when seeing the look of irritation, fear, confusion and regret mixed upon the woman's face.

Shaking her head slightly, Elena breathed out a light sigh and glanced at Serenity wearily, before merely shaking her head once again. "Look, I don't have time to explain. I promise everything will be explained at a later date," her gaze switched from Serenity to look toward the twins. "Fred and George Weasley, I presume? Good. Both of you need to take Harry and Serenity and get out of here. Apparate if you need too. Just get out; quickly. The wards haven't fallen yet but they're weakening. I'll be along shortly. Take them to your house. Arthur and Molly have already been alerted." All four teenagers stood there with blank looks on their faces whilst staring at the elder woman. 'Elena's' hair turned a bright pink and she glared at them fiercely. "What are you waiting for? GET OUT!"

The twins snapped into action almost immediately. Fred grabbed a hold of Harry and was out of the room with a loud crack as he apparated away while George went to grab Serenity. She, however, was having none of it. "Let go of me!" She snapped, yanking herself forcefully from George's arms before glaring at 'Elena'. "Tell me what is going on; now."

"Serenity, this is no time for your stubborn attitude. Go with George. Everything will be explained to you when you're safe. I promise," 'Elena' said softly, though fiercely, matching her foster daughter's glare.

"NO! Everything will be explained to me no..." Serenity was cut off as a loud crash echoed throughout the small house, and she yelped as the entire place shook from the force.

"Damn it... The wards," 'Elena' whispered softly, and she worsened her glare toward Serenity. "Serenity, get out of here right this minute. No arguments," 'Elena' glanced toward George and nodded toward the younger girl. "Take her with force if you have too. Just get out of this house!" At that, 'Elena' turned around and exited the room, closing and locking it behind her before running down the stairs.

Serenity screamed in frustration, kicking the door which only served to irritate her more as she felt her toe throb with pain, while George sighed and shook his head gently. "I'm sorry about this," George muttered. Strong arms wrapped around Serenity from behind and she kicked and struggled in his grasp screaming "let go!" before the red head apparated away with her.

They were just in time to get away before the house collapsed in on itself, flames engulfing the building as an eerie dark green skull with a snake sliding out of its mouth rose up into the sky.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2**_

_**Gringotts**_

George grimaced as they appeared with a loud crack on an empty street, before bending over and groaning in pain as a swift kick to the groin caught him off guard. Serenity scowled at the male that was bent over in front of her, having finally gotten herself loose from his grasp. She glanced around slowly, eyeing her surroundings wearily. 'Where am I?' the thought raced through her head, causing her breath to hitch for a moment in her slightly panicked state. She then closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, exhaling the final one in a sigh. She opened her eyes afterward, glancing at the male in front of her that was struggling to get back up, still holding a hand over his crotch. She smirked. "Serves the idiot right," she muttered under her breath, directing one last glare toward the red head. Finally raising her gaze to glance around, she fully took in her surroundings.

Only now did she realize that it was dark out, the only light coming from the crescent shaped moon hanging above them, covered partially by stormy looking clouds. She frowned. She didn't have a single clue as to where she was, and before she could get to far lost in her thoughts, someone in front of her cleared their throat. She snapped her gaze toward the person, noting that it was Harry, who was shifting from foot to foot awkwardly. She simply narrowed her eyes at him, deciding to get some answers. "Where am I?" she said, her voice a soft questioning drawl as she allowed her facade to slip across her features, masking her emotions; other then the narrowing of her eyes.

"I...On a road?" Harry answered lamely, cringing slightly. What was he supposed to answer with? 'Oh, well we just apparated into the middle of nowhere, and there's a house just up ahead that you can't see because it's under a spell!' Oh yes, that would go over well.

Serenity snorted softly, rolling her eyes in exasperation. "Obviously we're on a 'path'! But WHERE?" she snapped, the volume of her glare intensifying.

George seemed to have recovered enough to glare back at her, clearly ticked off with the girl. "Where we are is none of your concern," he snapped back at her, before looking over at Harry and Fred who were watching him with barely concealed amusement. "Come on; let's go before mum and dad come out to look for us."

Sneering faintly, Serenity stubbornly dug her heels into the ground, her arms folding across her chest. "I am not going anywhere, until one of you idiots tells me where I am, and where _exactly_ you're planning on taking me," she said coldly, her nails digging into her forearms.

Harry paused, watching as the two red headed twins continued walking, snorting and muttering about spoiled brats. With a sigh, he glanced over at Serenity. "Look, I know this is a little...well...odd. The only thing I can tell you is that we're going to Fred and George's home. It's obvious that T-...your mum knows them, so...why not just trust her instinct and come with us? Maybe she'll already be there waiting for you," Harry said slowly, watching the facade that Serenity kept protectively across her features slip for just a moment before it went back into place with ease.

"Fine," she muttered, taking a hesitant step forward before stalking off after the two twins, leaving Harry to follow after her, groaning in annoyance. Merlin save him if she was staying for too long.

The Burrow stood in front of them in all of its 'glory', the small tower-like house looking as if it were about to collapse at any second. Serenity wrinkled her nose faintly, her eyes flicking from side to side as if to take in all of the surrounding area. While she wasn't paying attention, they managed to get to the door before a plump red-headed woman rushed out from the house and encased the two twins, and Harry into a hug. Then, without a moment's hesitation, the woman wrapped her arms around Serenity and hugged her as well. Serenity stiffened when she felt unfamiliar arms wrap around her, and she stayed stock still until the woman released her, looking her over and tutting softly. "You are much too skinny, dear. What was Tonks thinking?" The woman muttered to herself, completely oblivious to Serenity's discomfort.

Frowning faintly, Serenity glanced at the woman, her eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Tonks?" she questioned, clearly confused as to who the person was. She was ignored, however, as the woman grabbed a hold of her arm and tugged her into the house, the three boys following after; the twins snickering at random intervals at her discomfort, to which Serenity simply scowled. She _**hated**_ being ignored.

Harry glanced between the two as they were all ushered into the house, before he noticed Remus Lupin standing in the kitchen, looking rather uncomfortable. Harry offered the werewolf a small hesitant smile, and Remus smiled back tiredly. "How are you holding up, Harry?"

Shrugging faintly, Harry glanced back over to Serenity who was being shoved into a chair with a pile of Molly's delicious food on a plate in front of her. "I'm...holding up," he finally responded toward Remus, returning his gaze back to the werewolf.

Remus nodded his head slowly, glancing toward Serenity quietly, a faint smile making its way across his lips. "That's good. How was the journey here? Not unpleasant, I hope," he stated, glancing at Harry from the corner of his eye.

Harry gave a small shrug of his shoulders, idly wondering what all the small-talk was about. "It was okay. Though she," he said with a nod toward Serenity, who was glaring at the plate of food in front of her, "doesn't seem too happy about it."

Serenity glanced over her shoulder at Harry, having obviously heard him. Her eyes narrowed slowly, almost challengingly, as she stabbed her fork rather violently into a slice of meat on her plate. Harry grimaced faintly, while Remus simply chuckled softly. "All will be explained in time."

A few hours had passed as the Weasley's, Remus, and Harry ate quietly; Serenity being too busy stabbing at the meat on her plate and mashing the potatoes until it looked like slop on her plate to bother eating it, when the fireplace flashed a bright green and an old wizard stepped out from the fireplace. Serenity jumped at the sudden sound while Molly went to go and greet the headmaster, exchanging pleasantries with the male. Serenity glanced out of the corner of her eye at Harry and noticed that he'd lowered his head and was glaring at his plate. She frowned, wondering what that was all about. The only thing she could guess was that he didn't like the old man, as the others were all but fawning over him like he was some Greek god. Serenity couldn't help but sneer and turn her attention back to the mutilated food in front of her, her stomach rolling unpleasantly.

Sighing, she turned her gaze to the boy at her side. "Is there a bathroom in this dump?" she muttered this softly, though the bitterness in her voice was obvious. Harry glanced up from his plate and looked at her, frowning for a moment before slowly nodding his head. He got up from his seat, allowing it to softly scrape backward, not making a sound. Serenity got up as well, and followed him out of the room and up a rickety old staircase, ignoring the glances they were both getting from the people that occupied the room behind them.

"It's just up there, on the left," Harry muttered out, casting a glance down the stairs for a moment, barely holding back a grimace. Before he could move to go down the stairs, Serenity suddenly grabbed a hold of his arm and yanked him the rest of the way up the stairs, opening the door and slipping inside the bathroom with the boy. Harry didn't have much of a chance to say anything before he was slammed back against the door, forcefully closing it, a wince of pain crossing his features. Serenity leaned forward with a low hiss, narrowing her eyes toward him.

"You are going to explain everything. This is pissing me off, not knowing what the hell is going on. How the hell did that old guy come out of the fireplace? In fact...How the hell did we get here in such a short time?" She finally shrieked, though she made sure to do it in the quietest voice possible so that none of the occupants downstairs could hear them.

A frustrated look was evident upon her features, and Harry stared at her quietly, before sighing and brushing a hand back through his hair; a habit he had when he got nervous. "I...Look; I have no idea how much I'm supposed to tell you. So I can't answer any of those questions! The only thing I know about you is your first name, for mer-..." Harry stopped, faltering on his wording before he shook his head and continued. "All Remus said was that 'All would be explained in time', I'm as lost as you are right now."

Serenity frowned and released her tight grip on Harry's shoulders, shifting away from him and giving him time to escape if he wished to do so. He simply stood there, leaning against the door, clearly not wanting to go downstairs. A confused look crossed her face at that thought, the mask she usually kept up to conceal her facial expressions having vanished completely. "Why do you seem to hate that ...old guy that stepped ..." she grimaced faintly, pausing before finally speaking again. "That stepped...out of the fireplace?" She looked almost pained at having to say the last four words.

Harry simply glanced off to the side, frowning and nibbling at his lower lip. This caused the fringe that usually concealed the lightning bolt scar on his forehead to fall off to the side, showing the sharp edges of the marking. Serenity noticed it almost immediately and reached a hand up, her thumb trailing across the marking slowly, her eyebrows furrowed together once again. She began chewing at the lip ring still sticking out of her lower lip, toying with the silver band as her confusion seemed to grow even more. Harry, meanwhile, was forcing himself not to flinch at the touch. He wasn't used to people trying to touch the scar on his forehead. Usually they just looked at him with awe, or hatred, depending upon what the press was writing. He grimaced and was about to ask her to stop when Serenity suddenly dropped her hand and narrowed her dark emerald eyes toward the boy in front of her. "How did you get that?" She whispered hoarsely, her fingers twitching and clenching at her sides.

Harry stared at her quietly, his eyebrows furrowing slightly. She seemed almost...scared; Or worried. He wasn't sure exactly, and he wasn't sure he wanted to find out quite yet. "I... Got it in a car accident," he finally said, deciding to play it safe and use the excuse that the Dursley's had given to him for most of his childhood.

Raising an eyebrow slowly, Serenity finally snorted. "You seriously expect me to believe that you got a _lightning bolt_ shaped scar form a _car _accident? Do I really look _**that**_ stupid?"

She folded her arms across her chest, staring at Harry, who shifted uncomfortably against the door. "That is where I got it," he muttered irritably, casting a glance around the bathroom that they were in. It was rather cramped and only now was Harry realizing this.

With a snarl that really didn't sound like her, Serenity slammed her hand against the door inches from Harry's head, causing him to flinch. Tugging off the wrist band that she used to cover the identical looking scar that marred the pale flesh of her wrist, Serenity shoved it in front of Harry's face. "You got it from a car accident, hm? Well, I've never been in a car accident before, so explain to me why I have the same exact scar on my wrist...that you have on your forehead," she whispered softly, her voice sounding like a low angered hiss.

Harry stared at the identical lightning bolt scar on Serenity's wrist, his emotions mixed into a mess of confusion. "I...but how?" he trailed off before shaking his head and pushing away from the door quickly, knocking Serenity off balance and causing her to stumble back into the toilet. Her eyebrow twitched in irritation.

"Watch...- Wait! Where are you going?" She yelped as she watched Harry open the door and move out of the bathroom, heading for the stairs. Serenity scrambled up from the toilet seat and lunged forward, out of the bathroom, only to trip on an uplifted board. Thankfully, before she could fall, strong arms caught her just as she was about to hit the ground. An identical pair of arms was holding onto Harry, keeping him from going downstairs.

"Be quiet," a familiar voice whispered into her ear, and she glanced up in confusion. George's...or was it Fred's? Arms were wrapped around her still, while the other twin had his arms wrapped around Harry; a hand covering his mouth.

"What's going on?" Serenity murmured softly, just loud enough for the twins to hear.

She got a 'shh' in response and before she could retort, something that looked like an ear was placed in her hand. She grimaced in disgust and was about to drop it but the red-headed twin holding her forced her to put the fake ear up to her own so she could listen to what sounded like...voices?

"...not let them find out!" a deep, yet old voice boomed into her ear, making her flinch at the intensity.

"Harry will figure it out eventually!" a deep growling voice put it. It sounded like the haggard looking male that Harry had been talking to earlier.

"Exactly and so will Serenity! You can't keep this from them, Albus!" This voice, she recognized immediately. Elena. She was downstairs!

Serenity struggled in the twin's arms, but he tightened his grasp on her waist quickly. The same voice whispered harshly into her ear again, "Just listen!"

Frowning, she glanced at Harry who was listening intently to the earphone thing. She sighed and obediently listened as well.

"...know that they cannot figure it out. We'll simply erase Serenity's memories of tonight and send her on her way. Those two cannot stay together!" the old voice boomed once again. His name was...Albus? Wasn't it?

"You can't do that!" Elena snarled. She sounded rather angry.

"No, you can't. It's not fair to Serenity, nor is it fair to Harry! You can't continue to separate him from his twin sister just because of some stupid prophecy, and..."

Serenity had stopped listening, her face paling several shades; eyes wide with surprise. _Sister?_ "I...what?" She finally managed to get out, her face a mask of dazed confusion. Harry had the same look of shock on his face, though his eyes were glinting with fury. Both, otherwise, stood their numbly, dazed by the sudden news; neither taking notice of Fred and George as they stepped away from the two.

Fred glanced at his twin and both nodded. Harry and Serenity could _not_ stay here. Not when Dumbledore seemed to be trying to keep the two apart. George frowned and glanced back at the two. It was cruel enough to separate them in the first place...but to keep them apart? That was beyond heartless. Especially with the bond that all twins shared; it was special and never meant to be messed with. In fact, it was against the law to separate twins; it could very well cause their death or an explosion of accidental magic.

The red-headed twins glanced at one another once again, before grabbing Harry and Serenity around the waist; quickly apparating away; straight through the anti-apparition wards which in turn, shattered them.

The alarms went off loudly while Tonks/Elena and Remus Lupin ran up the stairs, only to find two pairs of extendable ears dangling over the banister, and Harry, Serenity, Fred and George...gone.

Tonks and Remus glanced at each other before smirking. They'd gotten away.

* * *

The four of them appeared in an alleyway with a loud crack, which sounded a lot like a gunshot before Fred and George released the two black-haired twins, allowing them to blink out of their dazed states. Harry took a little longer then Serenity, who immediately rounded on the two red-heads. "You are going to explain everything to me_**...now**_," she growled out angrily.

Both boys sighed and nodded. "I promise we'll explain everything soon. But first we need to go to Gringotts," Fred responded and George nodded slowly, speaking right after his twin was finished his sentence. "We'll get stuff sorted out there, and get a room. _Then_ we'll explain things to you," George explained, glancing over at Harry, "To both of you."

Serenity and Harry glanced at one another before looking back at Fred and George. Both of them nodded in response.

The new found twins were now wearing dark black cloaks that they'd gotten from Fred and George to hide their appearance, so going through the Leaky Cauldron wasn't a problem, nor was getting into Diagon Alley. It helped that Serenity was staying silent throughout the entire affair as well. The problem came when they noticed Kingsley Shacklebolt scanning the street. One guess as to who he was looking for.

Fred and George quickly pushed Serenity and Harry into an alcove off to the side. "Damn they're quick," Fred muttered, glancing around the nearly deserted street. It _was_ rather late.

George sighed and looked at the twins hidden underneath the dark black cloaks. "You two are going to have to go by yourselves. We'll distract Kingsley in the mean time," George muttered softly, glancing around quickly.

"You two need to get to Gringotts and ask to speak to the goblin that manages the Potter account, and then ask for you both to be emancipated," Fred continued quickly.

Serenity frowned in confusion, but Harry simply nodded to everything being said. George continued after his brother was finished his sentence, "When we say go, run there as quickly as possible."

Harry nodded once again, still not speaking a word. Serenity, however, was beyond confused. "Wait...what?" she finally got out.

Fred and George sighed in exasperation, while Harry grabbed Serenity's hand in his own. "Just follow me," he muttered softly. Serenity nodded slowly and clasped Harry's hand in her own tightly.

George moved forward and tossed something into the street. It rolled to a stop just beside Kingsley, who didn't seem to notice it. Fred smirked along with his twin and they both started counting down. "5...4...3...2...1!"

The thing they'd thrown exploded into bright colors and Fred yelled, "Go!"

Immediately, Harry started running, pulling a startled Serenity behind him, who soon began running along beside him. "What the hell was _that?_" Serenity panted as they continued running down the street, shifting out of people's way if they didn't move.

Harry grinned underneath the hood of his cloak. "_That_ was one of the Weasley twin's new pranks. They haven't gotten all of the kinks out of it yet, though," he chuckled softly.

"Kinks?" Serenity questioned as they slowed down in front of a large white building.

"Instead of just making the people it's set on turn one color like it's supposed to, it makes the person flash different colors periodically," Harry said, his breathing only a little heavier than normal. "Well...We're here."

The large bank loomed over them ominously, the darkness making it impossible for Serenity to see what was engraved in the wall over the silver doors. "So we are," she responded blankly. "Now what?"

"Come on," Harry said, tugging Serenity up the marble stairs and through the large silver doors. Serenity stared around with a flicker of amazement flashing in her dark green eyes before she caught sight of the goblins. She let out a barely audible squeak and stepped closer to Harry.

"What are those?" she questioned wearily, eyeing the small creatures that were examining jewels and other things on high desks, which a few people in strange clothing were in front of.

"Goblins," Harry answered distractedly, dragging Serenity over to one of the desks. The goblin sitting there peered over the desk at Harry, one bushy eyebrow rising in question, "I'd like to speak with the manager that takes care of the Potter account."

The goblin sneered. "Do you have any proof to confirm who you are?"

Harry grimaced and lifted his hair up to uncover his scar. "Other than my scar, I'm afraid not. I'm not really...sure where the key to my vault is," he responded, wincing.

The goblin hummed thoughtfully before moving from the desk and around the corner, walking down the long hallway toward a set of doors, waving his hand through the air. "Come with me."

Serenity stayed quiet and simply followed behind Harry, still clutching his hand, as he followed the goblin through the large golden colored doors hesitantly, noting that they led into a fairly large office. The doors closed behind them with a rumbling bang, causing Serenity to flinch at the unexpected noise.

The goblin Harry had been speaking to before wandered over to another goblin that looked suspiciously like..."Griphook?" Both goblins glanced at Harry in surprise, and he could feel his cheeks redden with embarrassment. Serenity peered at Harry curiously before looking back at the two goblins that had been conversing quietly before Harry had interrupted. The one that he'd called Griphook chuckled softly and spoke up in a high, throaty drawl. "I'm surprised you remember me, Mr. Potter."

Harry gave him a sheepish look while the other goblin nodded unhappily to Griphook and left the office. "Err...Are you the manager for the Potter vaults?" he asked hesitantly.

Griphook nodded his head and waved a hand toward two comfortable looking chairs in front of the oak desk he was sitting at. "I am indeed. Please, take a seat." Both sat down in the chairs, Serenity having finally released Harry's hand. "Now, what can I do for you?"

Harry hesitated briefly, wondering what he should ask first. Fred and George had told them to 'sort things out'. He grimaced but before he could say anything, Serenity had looked at Griphook and stated quite bluntly, "We both want to be emancipated."

The goblin nodded his head slowly and rifled through a few sheets of paper in the drawer beside him, pulling out two sheets of parchment. "If you two would just sign these, we can get that ever with right now," he said, while placing a form and quill in front of them both.

Harry blinked in confusion, his eyebrows furrowing together. "Wait...Don't you need to make sure we are, who we say we are?"

Griphook merely looked amused. "If either of you were wearing glamour's or had polyjuice potion in your system when you entered the room, they would have worn off immediately. I knew you were who you say you are because you remembered who I was, for one," he explained before continuing, a small amount of anger evident in his voice. "And as for knowing that you had a sister, a twin none-the-less, was because there is a picture of her in the files pertaining to the Potter family that updates itself with each birthday that passes." He smiled faintly, "Though I admit to being glad to seeing you two together finally."

Harry frowned, though it was once again Serenity who voiced the question. "If you knew, then why didn't you tell Harry? I mean...I understand not being able to tell me, kind of..."

Griphook nodded once more and sighed. "I tried to inform Mr. Potter on several occasions after being made manager of the Potter accounts, but I haven't seen you since you were eleven, I'm afraid. All letters I've sent have been sent back unopened, and a few were even opened...but not by you."

"Dumbledore..?" Harry asked quietly, his eyes darkening faintly as Griphook nodded. "What else was there that you need to speak to me...err..." Harry paused and glanced at Serenity. "...us about?"

Griphook smiled, showing jagged teeth. "A few things, then you can be on your way. But first you need to sign these forms," he responded swiftly, before continuing. "Those are Blood Quills, so don't be surprised if your hand stings a bit after you use it."

Harry nodded and signed his name with his blood on the parchment, watching as it rolled up and burst into flames. Serenity hesitated, staring somewhat wide-eyed before glancing down at her own form. She sighed before carefully scrawling '_Serenity __Potter',_ fumbling slightly with the quill. She rubbed at the tiny words that had been scratched into her opposite hand as her form burst into flames as well.

Griphook nodded, putting away the quills before standing up. He grabbed a thick file from the top shelf of a large cupboard before banging it down on the desk. He then sat back down and opened it, retrieving a single piece of parchment before placing it in front of Harry. He then tapped it with a long talon-like fingernail, and Harry's eyes widened as an image of his godfather, Sirius Black, was suddenly hanging in mid-air in front of him. Serenity just looked confused. It was getting to be quite common.

The image stared out at nothing in particular before the image of Sirius Black began to speak. "Hi Harry. If you're reading this then I must have done something stupid to get myself killed," a chuckle escaped him, sounding exactly like the real Sirius' bark-like laugh, before his voice softened. "And I don't want you to blame yourself for my death. I know you far too well, Harry Potter, despite not having as much time with you as I would have liked. Things with Voldemort are heating up, and I want you to be careful. I also want you to watch out for Dumbledore. It might seem like he's trying to do everything for the 'greater good' as he calls it, but anyone with a brain can see that he's doing it for his own benefit. I love you Harry, and if you're hearing this then Dumbledore didn't let you go to the will reading like I figured he wouldn't. Everything that I had is now yours. As my heir you become Lord Black since I've passed. Every house, every galleon is yours."

Sirius' voice drifted off for a moment before he spoke once again as Griphook tapped the parchment once last time. "And to Serenity...Well, the last time I saw you, you were only a baby, sitting in the cradle with your brother, being an annoying little brat," he chuckled once more. "I am very happy that you two have finally been reunited. You had to have been, otherwise you wouldn't be hearing this right now... To you, I name you Serenity Potter, my second heir. You and Harry, hopefully, are getting along well enough that you can split the inheritance fifty-fifty. Good luck to you both, and play a few pranks on the teachers for me when you go back to school, 'kay?"

The image slowly drifted away, along with the familiar voice of his godfather and Harry glanced at Griphook quietly, not allowing any of the tears he wanted to let loose fall. Serenity was staring at the place where the image of Sirius Black once was in confusion and awe. "Wow..." was about the only thing that she could manage to let out.

Harry offered Serenity a tired smile before looking back at Griphook. "I realize we will probably have to go through everything eventually...But is it okay if we come back tomorrow afternoon?"

Griphook nodded his head as he placed the files back into the drawer he'd taken them from, giving another crooked smile. "Of course, I imagine you both are quite exhausted. And you do still need to explain things to your sister, Mr. Potter. I assume you'll need some money before you leave?" Without waiting for an answer he produced two small red sacks and handed them to either of the twins. "With this, all you have to do is tap it with your wand and say how much money that you need and it will take it straight from one of the Potter vaults," he explained before standing up from his chair and moving to the door, chuckling. "I'll see you both tomorrow afternoon and we can speak some more then."

Harry and, surprisingly, Serenity smiled at the goblin, saying a "Thank you for everything, Griphook", before both exited Gringotts bank and made their way to the Leaky Cauldron where they were to meet Fred and George.

It was time for some explanations.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter Three**_

_**Making Plans**_

It didn't take long for them to reach the Leaky Cauldron. It seemed that Kingsley had given up on his search after being hit by the small prank Fred and George had thrown at him. Entering through a small door at the side of the large brick building, Serenity and Harry made sure to keep their hoods up as they searched the room for the two red-headed twins. Harry frowned as he glanced around the almost deserted bar, looking for the familiar red hair. Serenity tugged at Harry's arm, catching his attention. They both made their way over to the side, spotting two heads of red hair...unfortunately, the twins weren't alone. The tall figures of Albus Dumbledore, Remus Lupin, Molly Weasley and Nymphadora Tonks were in front of them. Dumbledore's usually twinkling eyes had gone dim and were flashing with outrage at the two smirking twins in front of him. It looked like Harry and Serenity were on their own then.

Harry whispered softly in Serenity's ear, "We can't stay here. We'll have to find somewhere else to go."

Serenity glanced at her new-found brother and sighed, frowning. She knew he was right. And it looked like they weren't going to get the explanations that they were looking for. She nodded her head after a moment's hesitation. She really wanted to go over and see Elena...or Tonks, as she was seemingly called in this new world she'd found herself pulled into, "All right...but where?" She whispered back, trying to keep as quiet as possible and at the same time make sure that Harry could hear her. It was rather difficult, since there were very few voices speaking in the pub at the moment. Shifting further behind the pillar that they hid behind, Harry glanced from the adults, to the twins, then back to his sister.

"We'll have to go to the muggle world...or maybe..." A thoughtful look crossed his features before he slowly nodded. "Come on," he whispered hurriedly, tugging at Serenity's arm roughly. The almost sixteen-year-old gave a small squeak of surprise, alerting the other occupants of the room to their presence.

"Oops..." Serenity muttered under her breath, wincing slightly at Harry's forceful tug, which propelled her forward and out the door that they'd entered in order to get into the Leaky Cauldron. Shouts sounded behind them as Harry ran through Diagon Alley quickly, searching between the shops for a moment before he pulled her into another dark alley. A few lamps were lit down the sides but it didn't do much to conceal the obvious unpleasantness of the place. "Where are we?"

Harry glanced over his shoulder at Serenity, slowing his pace to a fast walk instead of the full-out running he had been doing before. "It's called Knockturn Alley. Just be quiet, and don't remove your hood, no matter what happens. This place is dangerous at the best of times," he muttered softly, his eyes searching around slowly. He ducked into a small alcove suddenly as he heard a shout and running footsteps coming toward them, dragging Serenity along with him. She didn't think she'd ever get used to being dragged around like a rag-doll.

A few minutes passed as footsteps clonked by, their sticks lit with an eerie light that seemed to just barely cast a glow on the walls. A moment passed by as the footsteps faded away, and everything was left in silence, other than the faint creaking of shop doors and the sound of music pounding away in some late night bar.

Harry gave a small sigh of relief. "Good, they're gone. Let's go," he muttered to his twin. They both shifted out of the small alcove and started back down the alley, with Harry looking at the signs posted outside the stores and other buildings, trying to find a familiar name. When Sirius was alive, he'd told Harry about his escape from his parent's house and about coming to a small hotel in Knockturn Alley before he'd moved in with the Potter family. Harry could vaguely recall the name. It was something like 'Nightmare Palace', or so he thought. He wasn't completely sure if that was what the place was called or if Sirius had just made up the name for it. Harry grimaced. So in all likelihood, he and Serenity could be going on a wild goose chase.

"Do you even know where we're going?" Serenity muttered, stealing a glance at Harry. She could see the conflicting emotions warring on his face, and she couldn't help but let out a soft sigh. "So, we're lost then?"

It was more of a statement then an actual question, and Harry couldn't keep the annoyed look from showing on his face. He paused in his steps for a moment before continuing on down the ever-darkening alley. "I'm pretty sure I know where we are..." he trailed off and glanced around quickly. To be honest, he had no idea where they were. But there had to be a place around here somewhere. Sirius had gone there, after all...But maybe...

Harry shook his head and glanced back around the alley, frowning. Maybe it was gone? Or closed down? Sighing, he looked back toward Serenity out of the corner of his eye before admitting defeat. "All right, do you know anywhere that we can sleep for the night?"

Serenity glanced at him curiously before allowing a sly grin to cross her lips. "Maybe," she drawled, starting to act quite a bit like her old, sarcastic self.

They ended up going to the muggle world and renting a room in a nearby hotel after a quick trip to a restaurant to get something to eat, and a bit of junk food to munch on. Right now, Serenity was lying sprawled across her queen sized bed, staring lazily up at the ceiling as she took a slow drag from her cigarette. Gods she hadn't had one of these for so long, or so it seemed. She sighed. She was relaxing before she interrogated Harry, but she was also waiting for him to finish in the shower. She'd taken one first, having gotten into the bathroom first by closing and locking the room's door before her new twin brother could get in. She grinned at the memory. Honestly, this didn't seem like such a bad set-up anymore. She was almost starting to like having a brother the same age as her to boss around and mess with. But it was also nice to have someone her own age there to talk to and take care of her when she needed it. And had she _needed_ it the past couple of hours. The entire day had gone from going to some useless dinner party at the next door neighbors, and turned into what seemed like a battle from hell. This whole night had been exhausting. She sighed and knocked herself from those depressing and rather tiring thoughts, taking another slow drag from the cigarette held in her hand. She held the smoke in her lungs for a long period of time before finally exhaling, blowing the white smoke into the air, watching as the clouds twisted in the air before dispersing slowly as the ceiling fan blew it away.

Serenity sat up on her bed as she finally heard the shower turn off. Taking out an ash tray she put out the cigarette she'd just been smoking. Thank god they allowed smoking in here. She didn't know how she'd live otherwise!

Harry stepped out of the bathroom, wearing an old pair of blue jeans that had quite a few rips and tears in the legs. He wasn't wearing a shirt at the moment, and Serenity raised a single eyebrow, inwardly impressed that under all the rags that he'd been wearing before, that he had a body like _that._ She couldn't find it in herself to be interested in him though. At this thought, Serenity frowned and tilted her head up to stare at the ceiling. Well, she knew she wasn't gay in anyway-shape-or-form...so...maybe all of this wasn't some sort of prank that El-...Tonks had been playing on her. It was quite real and in some way, she'd already known that. Otherwise she was almost positive that she'd feel attracted to the male standing not far away from her, towel drying his hair. She snickered as the black strands stuck up in every direction, and burst into full-blown laughter as Harry tried to fix it; only to make it look even worse than it did before.

Harry glanced at his hysterically laughing sister in annoyance. "Well, if you think it's so funny, you fix it then!" He grumbled irritably, not really expecting Serenity to come over and actually fix it for him. But there she was, humming idly to herself as she rubbed some gel into her hands before spreading it evenly through his hair before he could so much as utter a word of protest. But it _was _helping. It looked a lot better than it did before at least.

Serenity, on the other hand, frowned and tapped her foot against the ground. Evidently, she didn't think so. "All right, first thing tomorrow morning, I am taking you out to get your hair fixed; something pierced and get you a _whole_ new wardrobe. This is ridiculous! You look like you live on the streets or something," she said, and Harry glanced at her, watching as Serenity wandered back over to the bed, lit another cigarette and collapsed back down onto the mattress, all the while muttering to herself about things to get, places to go and things to do tomorrow. He raised his eyebrows. Well, it would definitely be interesting to see how well they were going to live together. They would have to do it for the rest of July and all of August. Harry suddenly grimaced. And they had to get a few things figured out at Gringotts tomorrow afternoon. Like where they were going to live for the few months, for one, and he still had to figure out how in the world he was going to be able to teach Serenity how to use magic when he wasn't even sure where he could get her a wand! Or books! Or other supplies for that matter. They would stick out like a sore thumb in Diagon Alley, and Dumbledore was sure to have Order members scouring the streets for the two of them. He sighed once more and rubbed his forehead. Why did everything in his life have to be so complicated?

* * *

"...and that's basically all I can tell you about the magical world," Harry finished, before inhaling a rather large gulp of air. He didn't think he'd talked that fast in his entire life. Serenity was staring at him with wide eyes before she frowned and lay back against the sheets of her bed, staring quietly up at the ceiling. Harry had just finished explaining about what had been 'going on'...and about everything else that she'd had no idea about until now. She frowned. Harry still didn't know everything though, and that's why the Weasley twins were so useful. Biting her lower lip, she took another drag from the cigarette she was holding, before glancing at it, to the ashtray. For the past hour Harry had been telling her about the magical world and everything else involved in it, and through that hour she'd smoked almost a full pack of cigarettes. She wrinkled her nose. Really, she hoped that due to this whole witch-y thing that she'd be safe from the cancer that was sure to come from smoking _that_ many cigarettes all at once. Finally, Serenity looked up at Harry and narrowed her eyes. It was her turn now.

Harry swallowed at the look on her face, but otherwise kept silent and waited for the questions that were sure to come.

Serenity began almost right away, not waiting to see if Harry was ready to answer the questions that she was about to shoot at him or not. "So...if I'm a witch and your twin sister...then why didn't I grow up with you?" Her first question caught Harry by surprise, but he frowned, his eyebrows furrowing together in confusion.

"To be honest...I really don't know. I had no idea that I was a wizard before I was eleven, and it's only just today that I found out that I have a sister of all things. That'll have to be something that you'll need to ask Fred and George about. They seem to know something that we don't..." Harry responded, trailing off at the end.

With a faint hum, Serenity nodded her head before asking another, simpler question. "Will we be going to Hogwarts this year?" She got a nod in response to her question. "Where am I supposed to get a wand and ...all that other stuff you were talking about needing?"

Harry hesitated for a moment, frowning a little. "I'm not...really sure. I don't think we should go into Diagon Alley, where everyone else would usually shop for things. We'll be recognized far too easily and I'm sure Dumbledore will have Order members in the alley every day to keep a look out for us... I was thinking about asking Griphook if there were any other places that we could go to get all of the things you'll need. We'll need to get the stuff soon so I can try and bring you up to speed on everything we've learned in the past five years. Defense against the Dark Arts shouldn't be too hard. We haven't had a decent teacher since Professor Lupin taught in third year."

"How are you going to teach me everything? Isn't that like...a teacher's job or whatever?" Serenity muttered distractedly as she grabbed blindly for another cigarette. All of this information being given to her was really fraying her nerves.

"Usually. But I highly doubt Dumbledore's going to let you in. We have to make it look like you lived somewhere else...A cover-story or something to tell the Ministry so that Dumbledore has no choice but to let you in. No matter how much I dislike the Ministry, it's our best shot. But we have to stay far away from Dumbledore until then...I never thought I'd say this out loud, but the manipulative old goat might try to separate us again. I don't ...well..." Harry trailed off, embarrassed. He shook his head and continued with his sentence as if he'd never stopped. "We just need to stay away from him, and the rest of the Order. It'd be better if we didn't come into contact with anyone unless we have too."

Serenity cocked her head to the side curiously as she returned her gaze back to him, inwardly amused by the blush on his cheeks that he was trying so hard to find. "What about those...Owl things you were talking about before?"

Harry cursed softly. He'd forgotten about those. "We may have to get you to take O.W.L's at the Ministry as well...Hopefully they'll let you...They should..." He trailed off once again, sighing. This was getting more complicated by the minute. "Well, first of all, we should probably start by planning things to do tomorrow. You said you wanted to go shopping, right?" He glanced up, watching Serenity slowly nod her head as she took a drag from the cigarette held between her index and middle finger. "And we have to go to Gringotts tomorrow afternoon as well... So why don't we find somewhere to eat, go to Gringotts and find out where we can get the supplies that you and I need, and then go shopping after we get our stuff?"

Slowly, Serenity nodded her head once more, "Sounds good. We're not staying here the entire time, though, are we?" She responded, a small smirk curling at her lips.

Harry blinked before smiling sheepishly, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Add finding a new place to live to that list too, then."

She snickered faintly but nodded her head again, taking one last drag from her cigarette before putting it out in the ashtray on her night table. She then glanced over at the clock on the other night table between hers and Harry's bed's. It read 3:43am. She grimaced faintly. "Yeesh. Long day or what. We better get to sleep, 'Ri, otherwise we'll never wake up tomorrow morning." Harry looked a little surprised at the nickname and Serenity peered at him curiously. "Sorry. If you don't want me to call you that, I won't."

Harry shook his head and smiled. "No, it's fine. I don't mind. It just surprised me is all."

Serenity smiled and nodded for the umpteenth time that day before cuddling up underneath her covers, and clicking off the bedside lamp, engulfing her side of the room into darkness. "Goodnight, 'Ri," she murmured sleepily before drifting off rather quickly.

Harry yawned and slipped into his own bed, pulling back his covers and sliding underneath the comforter. "Goodnight, Serena," he responded quietly, before shutting off his own light with another wide yawn.

It wasn't long until he was fast asleep as well.

* * *

Serenity startled awake as she heard low moans. She glanced over at Harry's bed sleepily, watching the boy in question writhe around on his bed, his face scrunched up into an expression of horror and pain. Serenity frowned before she stumbled out of bed and wandered over to her twin. Carefully, she brushed the back of her hand over her brother's scar, which was enflamed and bleeding. She glanced at the same scar on her wrist before she rested it over her brothers. Serenity let out a sharp gasp of pain as a sharp stabbing seemed to spark at each nerve in her arm. Slowly, after the pain had moved to a dull throb, she removed her wrist from his forehead, watching as the reddened skin turned to its usual tanned color; the scar itself looking completely normal. Harry, meanwhile, had drifted back to sleep, laying still against the sheets that were now curled around his legs and torso from his previous thrashing.

Serenity lifted her wrist up to look at it, grimacing as she saw that it looked as enflamed as Harry's had. She sighed and ignored the constant throbbing in her wrist, walking back over to her bed before sitting down at the edge, brushing a hand through her hair. She didn't know what she'd just done or why she'd done it. It just seemed… right. She was sure that there was something else going on, something her brother may not even know... Brother... That was a word that she had never thought she'd use until now. It all seemed like some unreal dream that she was going to wake up from at any minute. Shaking these thoughts out of her head, Serenity got up from her bed and walked over to the bathroom door, 'May as well take a shower while I wait for Harry to get up.'

Harry woke slowly, sighing in contentment. Slowly, he allowed his eyes to flutter open, relishing in the fact that his scar didn't hurt this morning. Oddly enough, he remembered starting to feel the pain and a tugging sensation, as if he were being pulled into a vision, but he couldn't seem to recall what the vision was about. He shrugged. It couldn't have been that important, otherwise he'd of remembered it.

Harry sat up and traced his scar with his index finger, allowing his thoughts of the previous night to wash over him. Right... he had a sister and they were on the run from the Order... Who seemed to want to get rid of her? A frown crossed his lips for a moment before he shook his head. As everything slowly started to come together in his head he stood up swiftly and glanced at the alarm clock that was set next to him. The glowing red digits read '10:05am' and he sighed in relief. He could distantly hear the shower in the bathroom running, and glancing over at Serenity's empty bed confirmed that his sister was in the shower at the moment.

Harry moved away from the bed and walked over to where he'd dropped his shoes and shirt last night after he'd showered. All of his stuff was back at the Dursley's, which was probably destroyed. He winced. This also meant that all of his school things, his wand... his invisibility cloak... the photo album... All of it was gone. Harry slumped to the ground as he remembered. Thankfully, Hedwig had been sent off to the burrow for safe-keeping, as he didn't know if his Uncle would lock her in the cage for the entire summer or not. He smiled faintly before it quickly disappeared. They would have to buy new clothes before they went to Gringotts to discuss the financial matters concerning his...their parent's vaults, as well as the Black family vault. He grimaced once more. Today was definitely going to be a busy day.

Hearing the sound of the door opening, Harry looked up to see Serenity in her dirty clothes, drying her hair with a towel. Serenity glanced up at the feeling of someone watching her, peering at Harry curiously, "You hungry?" She finally said to knock him out of his thoughts, and Harry nodded slowly.

"We should probably eat, and then go shopping to get some clothes. Then we'll have to get to Gringotts without being noticed," he murmured, a faint grimace crossing his features at how hard that plan was going to be. "Then again, we should probably eat, go to Gringotts to get some money and deal with everything, and then go shopping."

Serenity let out a small laugh and dropped the towel she was using in the hamper next to the door. "Sounds like a good idea," she replied, snatching up her cigarettes from the night table, head tilting toward Harry. "Well then, let's get going! I'm starving."

They both exited the room after gathering their stuff and made their way down the hall before going down to the lobby using the elevator. As both of them exited the 'evil contraption', as Serenity called it after she'd fallen to the ground when it started going down in jerky movements, they made their way over to one of the tables in the corner, where a small cafe was set up for guests. After Harry and Serenity had eaten and paid with the muggle money that she had lying in her pocket, they both left the hotel and made their way to the entrance of the Leaky Cauldron.

Harry paused outside the door and frowned. "We need some sort of disguise," he muttered, more to himself then his sister, but she answered anyway.

"Just keep your head down and avoid large crowds of people. If we're spotted, we can just run for it," she replied, shrugging a shoulder before pushing past Harry and entering the pub. Harry followed her quickly, ducking his head and flattening his unruly black hair over his scar. He kept his eyes lowered to the ground, following at Serenity's heels. They made it into the small alcove, where the entrance was just opening to admit a wizard. The teenagers both entered with him before moving off in a different direction.

They both managed to make it half way to Gringotts when they were spotted by Molly Weasley who called out in a shrill voice, "Harry James Potter!"

Harry winced and swiftly followed Serenity when she took off at a run toward Gringotts. Running footsteps behind them indicated that they were being pursued by at least two people. They ran up the stairs of the bank and rushed through the doors, dodging past people who were exiting the bank. They rushed toward one of the desks and Harry gasped out, "We need to speak to Griphook. We have a meeting with him."

The goblin nodded slowly and pushed a button before pointing toward the door they'd entered before which had opened a crack. Serenity and Harry quickly walked to the door and entered before closing it behind them, hearing the faint yells of their names behind them. They both sighed in relief before glancing up as they heard a soft chuckling.

Griphook was staring at the two children in amusement. It was obvious that they'd just run all the way here. "Please, have a seat. I have to admit I wasn't expecting you until later, but now is fine."

"Thanks," they both mumbled, collapsing in the offered chairs.

The goblin nodded before shuffling through papers. "Well, let's get down to business then, shall we?"

* * *

"So you're saying that we have at least six estates, and... a LOT of money," Harry said weakly as he looked through the papers.

Griphook nodded slowly, looking quite amused.

Serenity was sitting in the chair, staring off into space before she finally managed to mutter out a 'wow'.

"Wow, indeed, Mrs. Potter. Now, about your parents will. I have reason to believe that it was not executed, or ever shown to anyone but Albus Dumbledore. He said that in your parents will, they said for you both to be separated; Serena was to live with one of your father's friend's and Harry, you were to go to the Dursley's. With everything going on at the time, I don't believe the will was ever read by anyone else," Griphook muttered, taking out a roughed up looking piece of parchment from one of the files sprawled across his desk. He then handed it to Harry before continuing, "I also have reason to believe that your parents did not state these things in their will. But the only way for us to have checked was to have one of you open it and take a look. Unfortunately we've never been able to make contact with either of you. When you came the first time, Harry, I simply assumed that you already knew about what was in your parents will. Evidently, I was wrong."

Harry nodded slowly; absorbing all of this into his brain before he cracked the wax seal on the parchment that had sealed it shut and opened it. Slowly, his eyes flicked across the page. He frowned a few minutes later when he'd finished. "According to this, we were both supposed to stay together and we were to go to Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Molly Weasley, or someone named... Marcus. It doesn't say a last name for him."

Griphook frowned thoughtfully and nodded slowly. "I'm not sure who this Marcus character is, personally. But, as I thought, the will should have been opened and read. Or Dumbledore should have been forced to provide proof of his claims." He sighed wearily. "I'll fix all of this up soon enough and send you both a letter in a few months when I have everything sorted. Neither of you will have to go back to living with your previous guardian, nor will you be separated. Now, that's all that I needed to inform you of. I assume you need to go to one of your vaults to retrieve some money? We...-"

Serenity butted in here. "You guys don't have...well... something like a muggle credit card, do you? It'd be much easier instead of carrying around that many coins."

"If you hadn't of interrupted," Griphook said dryly, causing Serenity to give him a sheepish look. "Then you would know that we do, in fact, have pouches where you can simply ask for the right amount of money, and the sack will be filled instantly. The money, of course, will be taken out of one of your five vaults. I assume you'd like one?"

"Two, if you wouldn't mind," Harry replied, seeming to come out of his thoughts; finally.

"Very well then," the old goblin muttered as he shuffled through one of the drawers of his desk, grumbling about 'not being able to find anything in this mess'. Harry and Serenity exchanged amused smiles before returning their gazes to Griphook who shot up from his crouched position by his desk with an 'aha!' He then handed them both a blue and red velvet pouch. The blue one went to Serenity, while the red one went to Harry. "Here you are."

* * *

Not long after, Harry peered out cautiously from a crack in the door before grimacing. "They're still here," he sighed, "How are we ever going to get out now?"

Griphook shook his head slowly, rolling his eyes heavenward. "This way, children," he replied, opening a door that looked like a bookcase beforehand. "This will take you straight to Ollivanders. After that, however, you're on your own I'm afraid."

Both sighed in relief. "Thanks Griphook. It was nice seeing you again," Harry said, smiling toward the goblin.

The goblin simply nodded and ushered them both into the passageway. After they were through, the bookcase closed with a soft click.

Harry glanced toward Serenity and sighed. "Well, I suppose we'll both have to get a wand anyway. Mine was likely destroyed. And then we'll hit the bookstore. Anywhere else we need to go?"

"Don't we need those weird...clothes and other stuff for school?" Serenity responded dryly, making her way along the dark tunnel, her hand against the wall to keep her balance and stop her from slipping on the damp concrete under her feet.

"Right. Forgot about that..." Harry mumbled, before shaking his head. "I guess we'll also have to stop by a clothing store. London okay for now?"

"That's fine. Why are you asking me, anyway?" Serenity replied with an amused look toward her new brother.

Harry gave her a sheepish look and shrugged. "Figured you'd want to pick out where we went. I've never really gone shopping in London. Besides, we still have to find a hotel or something to stay at, remember? Might be a clothing store around there somewhere."

"London's fine," she said dryly, before pushing on the brick wall they'd eventually come too. "What did Griphook tell us to do when we got here?"

"Knock once and then push on the wall." Harry did this and the wall shifted before the bricks moved to the side, revealing Ollivanders wand shop. Harry sighed in relief.

Serenity, at hearing this, narrowed her eyes. "Why do you look so relieved? We haven't even gotten out of Diagon Alley yet."

Harry smiled faintly. "Wasn't positive if that's what Griphook had told us to do, is all."

"Wait, wha...-"

"Why hello Mr. Potter. Ah, and I see you brought your sister this time. Serenity Potter, is it not?" A soft wispy voice said from beside them.

Serenity squeaked and turned around sharply, staring wide-eyed toward the old man in front of her. Harry tried not to laugh at Serenity's reaction and nodded toward Mr. Ollivander. "Yes sir. We're here to get a wand for her and myself, actually."

Mr. Ollivander hummed thoughtfully, before nodding and wandering toward the back of his store, rustling through the boxes. A few fell off the shelves, landing on the ground with a loud 'thud' which caused Serenity to jump and Harry to outright laugh this time.

"Why are you so jumpy? Relax," he said in amusement.

"Yeah, yeah. Easy for you to say," Serenity grumbled.

Harry sighed in exasperation and shook his head. Meanwhile, Mr. Ollivander had gotten Serenity to try at least six wands. One of them blew up as soon as it entered her hand, another knocked more boxes off their shelves, two blew something else up, and the last two simply...didn't work. The old man sighed and hummed, once again going to the back before coming back with a grey box. He opened it to reveal a pearl white wand inside of it. Serenity tilted her head curiously at feeling a slight tugging feeling toward the new wand. Carefully, Ollivander handed the wand to her and she gently flicked it. Bright red, white and green sparks flew from the end and she smiled faintly.

Mr. Ollivander nodded once. "Very good. 15 inches Oak with unicorn blood willingly given, and the tail feather from a white phoenix," he said with a smile. "A very unique wand."

Serenity nodded slowly, entranced by the smooth feel of the wand in her hand.

"As for you, , I'm sure you will be pleased to know that because of the phoenix feather that resides in your wand, when it was destroyed it immediately came back here," Mr. Ollivander said, handing him the smooth wand made from holly and one of Fawke's feathers.

"But how…?"

"It is a very special wand. One reason why wands made from a phoenix feather are so rare is because they, like phoenix's, go through a rebirth and end up back where they were last… born, as it were."

The twins exited the wand makers shop, waving toward him as they left and made their way to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions and Twillfit and Tatting's. After getting things there, they stopped at Flourish and Blotts, the Magical Menagerie, the Apothecary, the Cauldron Shop, and Stationers. After getting everything they needed, they left Diagon Alley quickly before they could be spotted, Serena with a load of new school supplies and a pet viper wrapped securely around her throat.

After exiting the Leaky Cauldron, Serenity turned to Harry with a raised eyebrow, motioning to the bags and other packages that now filled their arms. "Why don't we find a hotel and set everything up there, and then go shopping for... What did you call them? Muggle clothes?"

Harry nodded thoughtfully. "Why don't we just stay at the one we were at before? That way we aren't moving around too much," he suggested, and Serenity nodded.

Both made their way to the hotel and paid to stay in the room for another month. That's all they had left until they had to leave for Hogwarts. Harry frowned at that thought. "We should probably stop by at the Ministry of Magic to get you signed up for Hogwarts, and get your OWL's taken," he murmured to himself.

"But... I don't know any magic," she said blankly, frowning.

"Don't worry about it. I'll try and catch you up before you have to go take your exam. It's not a big deal. Besides, now that we're emancipated, we're legally considered adults, which means we can do magic without it causing any... unneeded circumstances," Harry explained, grimacing as he spoke.

"Oh... Okay. Well, let's get shopping! I really need to get out of these dirty rags," she sighed, glancing down at her rather ruffled appearance. She grimaced faintly. "Yuck."

Harry laughed and shook his head. "All right, but first we need to drop this stuff off in our room, remember?"

"Well then, what are you waiting for? Let's go!"


	4. Notice

Hi guys,

For this story and one of my other ones, I'll be completely re-writing them. I'm very sorry to all of my dedicated readers, I feel absolutely horrible. I'll also be deleting my other two stories for the time being. I found that when I went through both of these stories, that my writing was severely lacking. I won't be deleting them as of yet, and will be posting the new versions separately. I'm hoping to make them better then before, and have faster updates by doing this. I've simply forgotten where I was going with both stories, and so I'd like to start over. Again, I'm very sorry! I'm hoping to have both up either before or after the new year.

Thank you for your patience!


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